Casey Cagle appoints committee of senators to consider state takeover of Atlanta's airport (Columbus: exemption, law)

[bu2]

Originally Posted by oldschoolChevy

LMAO. Yeah because the state of Georgia totally has their sh*t together. Our public education system is bottom of the barrel, SW GA has whole swaths of areas without proper hospital/medical coverage, crime in Macon and Columbus has been off the charts the last few years, meth is a huge problem in NW GA, and last I checked the state was still waiting for that $800 million from the Feds for Hurricane Micheal that left a crap load of farmers down there in the red. This state as a whole has quite a few problems right now, and HJIA isn’t one of them. Not even close.


But we all know the real reason behind this, Ray Charles could even see it. If you think that the types of folks who are willing to let all those aforementioned issues slide, in lieu of what’s basically an ego stroke in the potential HJIA takeover, actually know what their doing then I have a bridge over the Chattahoochee I want to sell you. I’d put HJIA in the hands of those who made it what it is, over those mouth breathing yokels under the Gold Dome any day of the week

The people who made it are dead or retired. Now we have just had people bilking it since Bill Campbell.

[jsvh]

Originally Posted by bu2

The people who made it are dead or retired. Now we have just had people bilking it since Bill Campbell.

ATL has continued to grow and thrive over the years. It didn't even surpass Chicago to become the busiest until the mid 2000s. Heck, the Atlanta Airport of the 1970s literally doesn't exist anymore. It has been rebuilt / and built up so much over the years.

ATL has had continued growth and success over decades that is hard to find in anything run by the state of Georgia.


Atlanta Airport in 1964:

Current "midfield" terminal is located where those runways cross to form and "X" and where the neighborhood between the runways is on the left.

[AnsleyPark]

Originally Posted by jsvh

ATL has continued to grow and thrive over the years. It didn't even surpass Chicago to become the busiest until the mid 2000s. Heck, the Atlanta Airport of the 1970s literally doesn't exist anymore. It has been rebuilt / and built up so much over the years.

ATL has had continued growth and success over decades that is hard to find in anything run by the state of Georgia.


Atlanta Airport in 1964:

Current "midfield" terminal is located where those runways cross to form and "X" and where the neighborhood between the runways is on the left.

Cool photo, jsvh. Bet the folks in the neighborhood within the "X" all developed hearing problems...

[Atlwarrior]

Originally Posted by oldschoolChevy

LMAO. Yeah because the state of Georgia totally has their sh*t together. Our public education system is bottom of the barrel, SW GA has whole swaths of areas without proper hospital/medical coverage, crime in Macon and Columbus has been off the charts the last few years, meth is a huge problem in NW GA, and last I checked the state was still waiting for that $800 million from the Feds for Hurricane Micheal that left a crap load of farmers down there in the red. This state as a whole has quite a few problems right now, and HJIA isn’t one of them. Not even close.


But we all know the real reason behind this, Ray Charles could even see it. If you think that the types of folks who are willing to let all those aforementioned issues slide, in lieu of what’s basically an ego stroke in the potential HJIA takeover, actually know what their doing then I have a bridge over the Chattahoochee I want to sell you. I’d put HJIA in the hands of those who made it what it is, over those mouth breathing yokels under the Gold Dome any day of the week

Don’t forget they must deal with the water issue with the State of Florida over Lake Lanier usage as well.

[jsvh]

Originally Posted by AnsleyPark

Cool photo, jsvh. Bet the folks in the neighborhood within the "X" all developed hearing problems...

Thanks. Though, credit should go to "Atlanta Time Machine". They have a fascinating photo-series on the history of the airport (and many other bits of Atlanta history) here: http://www.atlantatimemachine.com/misc/airport.htm

Tragically, the creator of the site was run down by an angry motorist a few years ago and he has not been able to update the site as much.

That neighborhood is gone now (it is under the current airport terminal), but I have met people who grew up there. They identify where there house was by which concourse the house is now under!

[jsvh]

The Jolt: Opposition to airport takeover could cost Delta a tax break

We’re picking up word that legislation to give the state oversight over Atlanta’s airport could get smushed together with a separate bill to exempt Delta Air Lines and other carriers from paying state taxes on jet fuel.

That could put Delta in an unenviable position of backing the airport takeover measure -- which the airline has staunchly opposed -- or scuttling a tax break it has long sought.

If I were Delta (largest private employer in the state), and the state keeps playing these games I certainly would be shopping options to shift business out of the state.

[citidata18]

Originally Posted by jsvh

The Jolt: Opposition to airport takeover could cost Delta a tax break




If I were Delta (largest private employer in the state), and the state keeps playing these games I certainly would be shopping options to shift business out of the state.

Detroit would love to have them. Plenty of capacity to handle more traffic.

[Huntsville_secede]

Originally Posted by jsvh

The Jolt: Opposition to airport takeover could cost Delta a tax break




If I were Delta (largest private employer in the state), and the state keeps playing these games I certainly would be shopping options to shift business out of the state.

I would too but not sure where it would make sense for them to move. I don't think they have any other hubs that had the volume anywhere close to what they do at ATL airport.

[Huntsville_secede]

Originally Posted by citidata18

Detroit would love to have them. Plenty of capacity to handle more traffic.

Detroit is probably their 2nd biggest hub. They could shift some of their business operations to Detroit I guess to send a message, but I don't think it would make sense from a logistical and business standpoint to shift a lot of their flights from Atlanta to Detroit. They don't have much competition as far as major hubs in the Southeastern region. There are a lot of other large airports in the Midwest/Northeast already.

[jsvh]

It doesn't mean that we wake up tomorrow and Delta no longer flies to Atlanta. But pretty easy to see Atlanta to start to get skipped over for new major international routes in favor of hubs like NYC, Seattle, Miami.

Maybe they hold on some of the old Northwest offices in Minneapolis a little longer and start locating some groups like reservations there.

Then instead of connecting through Atlanta for destinations like Nashville, or North Carolina, or Austin you start to get more direct options or connections through other hubs. And slowly traffic that used to go through Atlanta connects elsewhere.

Maybe even somewhere like Nashville or Birmingham gets a mayor that wants to offer Delta a nice deal to create a new hub for the southeast.

Anyways, Delta shifting growth away from Atlanta is certainly not an impossibility, and the State government trying to test how far they can push their largest employer before that start to openly happen is not wise.